Yet another record daily rise: The Health Ministry reported 2,301 new covid-19 infections yesterday, up from 2,298 the day before, marking a second consecutive record for new cases in a day. Egypt has now disclosed a total of 439,651 confirmed cases of covid-19. The ministry also reported 59 new deaths, bringing the country’s total death toll to 22,936.

The vaccine tally: 27,256,215 people are now fully vaccinated against the virus, while some 10.8 mn people have received only their first shots and 647,271 people have received booster shots.

A homegrown antiviral pill in the works? An Egyptian pill incorporating Lactoferrin — a protein found in milk — to treat and prevent covid-19 is currently undergoing clinical trials and is showing promising results, the head of the team in charge of supervising clinical research for our local covid-19 jab, Osama Azmi, told Al Hadath Al Youm (watch, runtime: 3:55) last night. The results of the trials will be published and peer reviewed before the pill receives regulatory approvals.

Covi Vax could be ready by April: Egypt’s locally made covid-19 vaccine, Covi Vax, will be ready in two months’ time, Azmi said. The vaccine is still undergoing clinical trials, and is also showing very promising results, he added.